In this article we will discuss about the applications of PCR. i. Detection of mutations: PCR is useful for detection of mutations related to genetic disease including point mutations, insertions and deletions. A notable example is that of the human dystrophin gene associated with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The large-sized dystrophin gene consists of about two million base pairs located on [...]
Cloned genes can be introduced into knockout mice by means of embryonal stem cells (ES cells). Embryonal cells have attracted tremendous attention in recent years, hence a brief introduction on ES cells is warranted. The concept of ES cells arose through studies on mouse and human teratocarcinomas. These tumours were found to contain cells, called embryonal carcinoma cells, the stem [...]
Recombinant DNA has opened new avenues for the study of gene function. The function of a cloned gene can be investigated by introducing the cloned DNA into eukaryotic cells. In simple eukaryotes such as yeasts Saccharomyces cerevisiae, molecular clones of various mutants have been prepared for genetic analysis. Like bacteria, yeasts offer advantages in having a small genome of about [...]